Five Kenyans held by Somali pirates over ransom

Five Kenyans have gone missing after being attacked or kidnapped in Puntland part of war-torn Somalia, Maritime and United Nations sources have indicated.

Two of them, including a woman, were attacked at an undisclosed location in the autonomous Puntland when pirates operating from nearby seas descended on the mainland and seized them.

Maritime analyst Andrew Mwangura identified them as James Gachamba Kuria and a female colleague Loice Njoki Waweru, adding that they were in Puntland selling pharmaceutical drugs when they were captured by armed pirates on land.

According to Mr Mwangura, the incident happened in February. He says local security agents mounted an operation and rescued James but Loice was not lucky and "her whereabouts remain unknown".

Mwangura said two male cousins whose names have not been given have also been kidnapped for ransom.

The two were based in Mogadishu where they had been installing fuel tanks and it is not clear how or why they ended up in Puntland.

A fifth Kenyan, also not identified, is also missing. It is not clear whether James was recaptured or why the reports have not been made to the public for close to 10 months.

However, reports indicate the captors have been demanding ransom for their release and redemption of 39 other victims from different nations.

Yesterday, Mwangura challenged the Kenyan government to show commitment and resolve issues touching on its nationals being held captive by pirates in Somalia.

Mwangura said he and other seafarers had been diligent in sharing information with Kenyan authorities whenever there were hijacking incidents involving Kenyans.

"It is dismaying to see the slow pace of response yet the country has at its disposal experts who could be used in negotiating for free passage home for victims of hijack by gangs of pirates," he noted.

He said the only foreign nation that has been committed to following up on the fate of its citizens whenever they were in trouble in war-torn Somalia is Indonesia.

He said despite a lull in pirate attacks in the last two years, parts of the larger Somali coastline, by far Africa's largest coastline, remain dangerous.

He said the case of the five Kenyan hostages was indicated in a report by the outgoing United Nations Secretary General.